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REM - Murmur / Reckoning

"We're Not from Atlanta, We're from Athens" is probably one of the enduring memories of anybody lucky enough to have caught REM on their first British TV appearance. It was November 1983, The Jam had split & other than U2, who had just released the excellent "War", current music did not have much to recommend it, (maybe that is why, out of necessity, I developed such an interest in early '70s music). Here was a band that was different. True, they sounded ragged as hell, and first time I heard it, I didn't like it. BUT. They were different, they were interesting. Fortunately being on "The Tube", I was habitually recording it, (besides I had read about this band), so after the program had finished, I watched them again, and again, and again. By the fourth or fifth time, the three songs; "Radio Free Europe", "Talk About The Passion" and "S. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)" had buried themselves deep in me - they're still there today as three of my all time favorite songs.

The next day I went straight to the best record shop in town "The LongPlayer" to buy their debut album "Murmur". No luck. All they had was a 12" single of "Passion" along with "Shaking Through" (also from "Murmur") along with "Carnival Of Sorts (Box Cars)" and "1,000,000" from their debut "Chronic Town" e.p. These tracks just went to reinforce my belief that REM were the future of intelligent rock music. After an agonizing wait of about 4 or 5 days LongPlayer got "Murmur" in for me.

What a dissapointment. With the exception of the 3 tracks that I already knew, the album sounded mostly limp, flat & uninspired, first time anyway. I didn't give up so easily though, so try again. Arrangements that had sounded thin & weedy first time round, started to sound multi layered & sophisticated. Guitar figures that had sounded simplistic & repetitive first time, now sounded simplistic & repetitive and hypnotic. Vocals that were annoyingly obscure, now sounded enigmatic and besides, no-one ever criticizes John Martyn for using his voice as an instrument. This was a whole new way of listening to music. I had been used to listening to incredibly clever, sophisticated music played by musicians of stunning virtuosity. This music was beautifully sophisticated by what was left out, rather than what was put in.

Anyway, if you wanted virtuosity, just listen to Mike Mills bass playing. Not many bands have their most accomplished musician playing the bass (Grateful Dead and maybe The Who excepted). It is almost as if Peter Buck's guitar & Mike Mills have changed roles, with Buck playing almost exclusively the rhythm track & Mill's bass following & often leading Michael Stipes vocal instrumentation.

How many great albums really grab you the first time that you hear them (Joy division's "Closer" sounded repulsively ugly first time, now it's exquisitely lovely) and by the time "Murmur" had been played a few times, it's greatness was obvious.

When they appeared on "The Tube" it was their first visit to the UK, during which they played I believe only about 3 gigs. Luckily though, REM were just about the hardest working band in the world at the time, touring constantly, so myself & Darren (who I went to well over 100 gigs with) only had to wait until next March to see our new found heroes. We got tickets to see three gigs on consecutive nights in the southeast. The first was in Worthing in a small club with a very Spanish sounding name (forgotten). We got there hours early in a desperate bid not to be late, and parked right by the front door. We saw Michael Stipe walk in surrounded by roadies lugging in the equipment, and then nothing for ages. Eventually, they unlocked the doors & let us in. There was still no-one about & nothing much to do.

Inevitably after a long drive & sitting in the car for so long, nature took it's course & I visited the "little boys room". Darren suddenly rushed in "Rob, Rob, Peter Buck is out there playing the fruit machine". I was out there seconds later and there he was, Peter Buck playing the fruit machine. High on adrenaline, we went over & started chatting to him. What an incredibly charming man. Here we were 2 kids who he had never met before, tongue tied and nervous, yet he made us feel totally at ease in seconds. We spoke about the band, their first single "Radio Free Europe", which was a different version to the one on the album, (he told us that we would have no chance of buying a copy anywhere), the new single by Elvis Costello (as The Imposter) "Peace In Our Time", which had Elvis's superb version of Richard Thompson's "Withered & Died" on the B-Side. He told us that as the next days gig was at the Marquee Club in Soho, he would be paying a visit to Tower Records (I think) to buy himself a copy. Peter Buck was & still is a big Richard Thompson fan.

The one thing that sticks in my mind more than anything else though about that night was when I asked him to play "Don't Go Back To Rockville" (from their second album "Reckoning"). "Sorry, we don't play that one", he told me. A while later the gig started, to an eventually packed house (it was very small),with me at the front, and a few wonderful songs in, Peter looked straight at me & said "This one's for you" and the band launched into "Rockville".

We went to see them the next 2 nights both at The Marquee Club. I remember thinking that the band played even better these 2 nights, but the experience of the first time I saw REM is the sort of thing that will live with you forever.